All eyes on Vingegaard at Visma | Lease a Bike, but Kuss remains a key contender alongside Jorgenson

“For now I am more than happy to help and try to bring the red jersey home,” said Kuss, who is still well placed in the GC after seven days of racing. Matteo Jorgenson is 17 seconds behind Vingegaard, who is in second place in the rankings. Kuss is just over a minute behind his team leader, who gave the overall victory to his American domestique in 2023. Will it be the other way around this time?

Kuss says he is not immediately looking for opportunities, but when the ‘more complicated and tougher stages’ come along, he will not shy away from them. "We got through the first week with just a few setbacks. I think we’re right where we want to be on the GC, so things are looking pretty good,” the climber looked back on Axel Zingle's withdrawal on day 2.

With three riders in the top 14 after seven days, Visma | Lease a Bike is doing what it set out to do. Vingegaard is going for the overall victory, but Jorgenson and Kuss had to stay with him to serve as co-leaders. All eyes are on the yellow and black team. “There’s always a lot of pressure, but we’re used to it. We have a group that’s experienced in grand tours.”

“There’s always a lot of pressure, but we’re used to it,” said Kuss. “You always have to be ready for anything. When you know you have the favorite, it changes the dynamic. After the Tour, the Vuelta is a nice race. There’s still pressure, but it’s a bit of a decompression from the Tour. You can focus a bit more on the racing and having a bit more fun.”

Although Tadej Pogacar took the upper hand over Visma | Lease a Bike and Vingegaard in the Tour de France, the Dutch team could still end the year with two overall victories in Grand Tours. Simon Yates won the Giro d'Italia in May, and now the Vuelta is up for grabs. “It would mean a lot to win this Tour. We’ll see for my chances maybe later in the race.”